Germany deported 81 Afghan nationals to their home country, marking the second such operation since the Taliban’s 2021 takeover and the first under Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government, according to Euronews.
The flight departed on Friday in coordination with Qatar, targeting individuals with criminal records legally required to leave.
The Interior Ministry confirmed the men, all previously known to judicial authorities, were returned via a Qatari-operated aircraft. Each deportee received up to €1,000 in financial support, a measure preventing court-blocked removals over destitution risks.
These are Afghan men who are legally required to leave the country and who have a criminal record.
The operation follows Merz’s electoral pledge to tighten migration controls, implemented since his May inauguration through enhanced border checks and suspended family reunification. Asylum applications have subsequently dropped from 329,120 in 2023 to 229,751 in 2024.
“These figures clearly show we’re on the right track, but we’re not there yet,” Merz acknowledged.
Critics contest deportations to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, citing systematic rights violations. Advocacy group Pro Asyl asserts “Afghanistan is not safe,” echoing the Federal Foreign Office’s warnings of “torture, extrajudicial killings, corporal punishment and public executions.”
Merz clarified Germany does not recognise the Taliban government but maintains “technical coordination” for operational purposes.
The deportation precedes Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt’s high-level migration summit with officials from France, Poland, Austria, Denmark, the Czech Republic, and EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner.
